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News highlights

State House Chief of Staff defends Uhuru’s Ksh300 million swearing in ceremony

State House Chief of Staff, Joseph Kinuyua has defended the cost of President Uhuru Kenyatta’s Ksh300 million swearing-in ceremony slated for next Tuesday. Kinuyua , who is also Head of Public Service, said the amount was all budgeted for. “Ksh300 million is enough for this event. We are not wasting funds,” he explained at Kasarani stadium on Friday.

Arithmetic errors put Lamu Senatorial results into question

A Malindi Court has heard that there were arithmetic errors in the August 8 Lamu Senator election results. Returning officer Mohamed Adan told the court that he used an Excel sheet which led to minor errors in the results for the individual candidates. He was speaking at the hearing of a petition challenging the election of Anwar Loitiptip as the county legislator. The official told Lady Justice Asenath Ongeri that he was hopeful the results will match if the ballot boxes are re-opened for scrutiny.

Defense Principal Secretary sentenced to six months in prison for contempt

Defence PS Saitoti Torome has been sentenced to six months in civil jail for contempt. High Court Justice Joseph Sergon issued the sentence on Friday, saying Torome disobeyed court orders to pay Ksh17,257,930 to a family that gave its estate to the government in 2006. The Judge issued the sentence after Sergon did not appear in court and explain why he failed to honour court orders, having been cited for civil jail for contempt earlier.

Business highlights

CBK confident in Kenya’s economic outlook

The Central Bank of Kenya says the country’s economy has displayed extraordinary resilience in the face of political uncertainty. CBK Governor Dr. Patrick Njoroge stated on Friday that this was due to the strength to its diversity and small and medium enterprises.

New vehicle sales set to fall by 20%

The Kenya Motor Industry Association (KMI) expects a dip in sales of new units this year, sustaining the decline for the second year in a row on the back of reduced spending by companies and Government. It projects the number of new vehicles sold by end of this year to drop to 10,927 units, a 20% slump as compared to 13,535 in 2016. This is nearly half of those sold in 2015 when the industry moved 19,523 units.

AfDB supports Cameroon’s economic reforms with Ksh22 billion loan

The African Development Bank Group’s Board of Directors has approved a loan of €180 million (Ksh22.1 billion) to the Republic of Cameroon to finance the first phase of the government’s Competitiveness and Economic Growth Support Programme (PACCE). PACCE is the first of a three-year programmatic general budget support operations to be implemented from 2017 to 2019 in order to shore up public finances in the wake of dwindling oil prices exasperated by security and related humanitarian challenges within the country and across the CEMAC region.

Sports highlights

Eden Hazard says Mohamed Salah ‘did not get his chance’ at Chelsea

Eden Hazard says Mohamed Salah did not get the chance to establish himself at Chelsea and has described the Liverpool forward as a “top, top player”. Salah joined Chelsea in 2014 but was limited to 19 appearances for the club before being sent out on loan to Fiorentina early the following year. The 25-year old then spent a season-long loan at AS Roma before joining the Italian club permanently in 2016.

Ex-West Ham Manager Slaven Bilic rejects West Brom talks

Former West Ham boss Slaven Bilic has rejected the chance to speak to West Brom about their vacant manager’s position. Bilic was sacked by the Hammers on 6 November and Premier League rivals West Brom dismissed Tony Pulis on Monday. It is understood the 49-year-old Croat wants to take a break from the game. Gary Megson is in temporary charge at The Hawthorns, with ex-Crystal Palace and Newcastle boss Alan Pardew odds-on favourite to get the permanent job.

Eric Cantona wants Man Utd to be more attacking

Manchester United great Eric Cantona says he admires Old Trafford boss Jose Mourinho – but would prefer the team to play more like a side led by Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola. Cantona, who spent five years at United between 1992 and 1997, described Portuguese Mourinho as “a winner who will continue to win”.